


I Think We're Alone Now

by hellareyna



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Bisexual Remus Lupin, Coming Out, Established Relationship, Hogwarts Seventh Year, James Potter is a Good Friend, M/M, Marauders Era (Harry Potter), Secret Relationship, Secrets
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-01
Updated: 2021-01-01
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:09:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,769
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28490694
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hellareyna/pseuds/hellareyna
Summary: On his last ride aboard the Hogwarts Express, Remus Lupin finds himself and his friends caught up in too many secrets.
Relationships: James Potter/Lily Evans Potter, Sirius Black/Remus Lupin
Comments: 4
Kudos: 88





	I Think We're Alone Now

**Author's Note:**

> Title from the song "I Think We're Alone Now" - Tommy James and the Shondells which reminds me so much of Wolfstar that it can be found on my Wolfstar playlist [ here ](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37CS5HLmQFRpVg1gr1TQw4?si=YvcIHuuvTZeZ6EAuW8-FcA)  
> If I got any British-isms wrong I'm American and I'm not actually sorry. Also, I hate JK Rowling.

The four boys greeted one another only as friends could when seeing each other for the first time after a school holiday. Peter glanced around nervously as if Dorcas, his girlfriend as of the spring of their sixth year, would pop out from any corner. Sirius and James told stories of their past summer at the Potter Manor.

Remus just listened as his friends gushed about their lovely holidays and tried not to wince when they gave him friendly hugs and punches on the arm. It wasn’t that they didn’t know he’d experienced a brutal transformation just four days prior, but it wasn’t at the forefront of their minds after six weeks apart. 

James was showing his three friends his new Head Boy pin that he had proudly tacked onto his sweater. Remus noticed that, like Peter, James was also glancing around the platform. Possibly hoping to see Lily Evans wearing her Head Girl pin.

At the end of their last term, James had been certain he was just one right move away from finally getting Lily to agree to a date with him. Perhaps the title of Head Boy would be what would get her to say yes. Remus thought it was certainly more likely than her being impressed by his Quidditch prowess, as James had been certain of once he had earned Captain back in their fifth year. 

That new title hadn’t had any effect on Lily. Unfortunately, Muggleborn girls didn’t seem to experience the same spell that many Hogwarts girls fell under when they encountered a proficient Quidditch player. Remus had joked that perhaps Lily would be more impressed if he took up football. This then led to Remus very badly explaining the Muggle sport to a curious James. 

Soon enough they heard the conductor announcing that students must begin boarding the train. James and Sirius received hugs and long goodbyes from the Potters while Peter and Remus stood awkwardly by their friends. Both their parents had left them at King’s Cross after making them promise to behave, study hard, and write as much as they could. The Potters gave the others quick hugs and goodbyes, but they weren’t quite as emotional. 

“Now I hope I’ll be seeing _all_ of you for Christmas,” Euphemia Potter called after the boys as they all raced to get on the train, “And don’t forget to write. Love you!”

Remus smiled at her concern. She treated all of the marauders as if they were part of the family. Would she still treat him like family if she knew that he was a werewolf he thought to himself? He shook off the dark thoughts as they all searched for an empty compartment aboard the train.

Once they were settled with their luggage and had secured James and Peter’s owls Remus sighed with relief. He was ready to go back to school and enjoy his last year before adulthood with his friends. It was hard to believe that tonight would be his last sorting ceremony, his last opening feast, and his last ride in a carriage without a horse. It was a strange feeling to miss something that hadn’t ended yet. 

“Well lads,” James interrupted Remus’s thoughts, “I have a lovely redhead to go meet and I hope you can entertain yourselves without me.”

Remus rolled his eyes at James’ declaration, “You mean you have a prefects meeting to lead that will also be attended by several other students?”

“Semantics,” James dismissed him with a quick hand gesture, then brushed off his robes before leaving the compartment.

Without James, there was a loss of the frantic energy that he always brought to the group. Sometimes, with the way he acted, one had to think that being silent would mean prison and lack of movement would mean death. Remus quite enjoyed this bit of quiet, although Peter certainly wasn’t as his nervous fidgeting was soon reaching new heights. He appeared to be both chewing on the nails on his left hand while picking at a loose thread on his sleeve with his right. 

“Goddammit Wormtail, if you want to go and find Dorcas we’re not stopping you,” Sirius snapped at the smaller boy causing him to jump.

“You’re my mates and I haven’t seen Moony all summer,” Peter spoke nervously, “Why would I want to spend time with _her_ when I’m with you?”

“Because you can’t snog your mates,” Sirius deadpanned.

Remus choked on his laughter as he reassured Peter that it was quite alright if he left the two of them to go find his girlfriend he also hadn’t seen in six weeks. Peter agreed meekly but Remus could see him smiling as he rushed to go find Dorcas’s compartment. 

The compartment was quiet now. Neither boy dared to be the first to speak. Sirius was waiting, Remus assumed, for the proper interval between Peter leaving and Peter realizing he’d forgotten something and needed to get back to his trunk. It passed and he moved from his seat across from Remus to his side. 

They were still quiet but Sirius’s hand began slowly creeping towards his own. It was painfully slow. Their pinkies intertwined and Remus felt a rush that he had missed since July. Their hands clasped together and he practically gasped at the touch. Perhaps taking it slow was the right choice as not to get overwhelmed too quickly. Perhaps it wasn’t right to jump back right where they had left it. Things can change in one summer he reminded himself.

He tried to hold that thought but Sirius’s index finger was rubbing circles into his wrist and he felt as if he was about to burst. So he jumped from the spot beside him. His legs were trapping the other boy, as he straddled him and began to kiss every inch of his face that he hadn’t been able to kiss these last few, painful, weeks.

Sirius chuckled as Remus kissed every bit of his forehead then his cheeks, “I was wondering how long it would take you to break. I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to handle it.”

He wanted to make some snide comment back about how Sirius had been the one to effectively kick Peter out but his mouth was otherwise occupied with kissing his jaw and enjoying the stubble that hadn’t been there last time. It seemed every time he blinked Sirius was taller and more handsome and he wanted to enjoy every bit of it. 

When it seemed that almost every bit of his face had been kissed he finally placed an almost chaste kiss against Sirius’s lips and then leaned back and smiled, “I missed you.”

“I could tell,” Sirius’s hands were softly rubbing circles into Remus’s lower back just as he knew he liked after a particularly difficult moon, “I missed you too Moony.”

Remus leaned his forehead against his and somehow smiled even wider, “I never want to be away from you that long ever again.”

“I’m sorry I couldn’t be there for the moons,” He was avoiding eye contact, “I wish I could have made it better.”

“You already have just by being here.”

“I just hate that you were locked up somewhere when you could have been out running with us.”

“Well, I couldn’t exactly tell my parents that I didn’t need to be watched during the moon because my boyfriend, who can turn into a dog, can take care of me.”

He saw how flustered Sirius got at the sound of the words _my boyfriend,_ almost as if that was the reason he had said those words. He wasn’t above playing dirty.

“Well not exactly _those_ words, but I should have been there for you.”

“My mum took care of me after the last one. It was alright. She has some Muggle medicines that she uses along with the creams Madam Pomfrey gave me and my dad helps with the magic bits.” 

Although magic still confused Hope Lupin after all these years she still managed to take care of Remus properly after every full moon she was with him. She had been doing it since he was just a little boy and he found comfort in her routine. Every time she would use up half a pharmacy's worth of materials only to eventually relent and allow her husband to heal him via magic.

The familiarness of their bickering always brought him some reassurance. Even if each transformation seemed to be getting worse as the months went by, at least he had the consistency of his parents arguing whether Neosporin or a healing draught would work better.

“But I don’t think your parents have the same special healing abilities I have.”

“Oh yeah,” Remus smirked, “And what would those be?”

“I think you know _exactly_ what those would be,” Sirius flirted right back before brushing his hands against Remus’s collar, exposing his neck more.

He leaned up to give himself better access as he kissed the exposed skin. At first, he gave soft kisses along his neck but as he moved lower he began using more force. They were far enough down that nobody except the two of them would ever see the marks he was leaving. It was another secret between them. Just something they had and nobody else could take away.

The very thought made him loll his head back and moan. He should have just stayed quiet because Sirius was, unfortunately, wearing an expression that meant he would be unbearable for the foreseeable future. 

“What was that Moony?” His mouth was much too far for Remus’s liking.

He rolled his eyes hoping that would be a sufficient response and leaned back in to continue kissing his boyfriend. Instead, Sirius’s arms on his shoulders held him back. Just inches away from where he wanted to be more than anything.

“I love you?” He asked, hoping that was sufficient.

Sirius smiled. It must have been enough because he let his shoulders go and moved his hands to the back of his neck to play with his hair. Remus didn’t go back in to kiss him though. He just watched his blissful face and enjoyed the feeling of him playing with his hair. 

They were quiet but he hummed in contentment and placed his forehead against Sirius’s once more. These quiet moments were rare. In just a few hours they would be back in their dormitory they shared with two other boys.

Sure, they were their best friends, but their almost constant presence didn’t make for good privacy. The nooks and crannies in the castle that only they knew about were nice for some private moments between them, but Remus preferred the comfort of beds and chairs, not dusty, ancient, and stony alcoves. 

They still hadn’t told Peter or James about the two of them. Sirius claimed it wasn’t because he was scared and Remus sort of doubted him but he also agreed. It wasn’t just that he was dating one of his friends, which would change their group dynamic normally, but the friend in question was a boy. He didn’t want to think about whether Peter was being weird because he was Peter or because he didn’t feel comfortable having someone queer sharing his room.

He preferred having this just between them too. No outside opinions about what it would mean in the future. It was better this way. He had handled secrets before, this was fine.

“This is nice,” Remus remarked blissfully.

“It would be nicer if your mouth was on mine again.” Sirius cracked back with a mischievous look on his face.

“You prat, I was being romantic,” Remus shuffled from his place on Sirius’s lap to sit beside him and then gave him a smack on the arm. They were both still smiling.

“How was your summer? Was it painfully boring without me?” His annoying little smile remained on his face as he started poking at Remus’s side.

It seemed his irritation from the beginning of summer when Remus had told him he would be unable to visit him and James, before school started, had not been forgotten. Sirius seemed to believe that he just didn’t want to see him with James around. He had tried to dismiss his alleged anxieties because apparently, he would be able to handle himself with a bedroom to themselves and not accidentally expose their relationship to James. 

Remus had attempted to explain that it was also his parent’s last summer with him before he graduated. They wanted to spend time together as a family. To Sirius, this was just a lazy excuse not to see him.

Sirius’s own relationship with his own family meant he had a hard time understanding when people felt any obligation towards their own. The Black family held no special spot in his heart. He had no loyalties to his blood relatives. All they had given him was pain, so he never gave anything in return. With his friends becoming his own version of family Remus found that Sirius took more offense to the rejection. But he couldn’t tell him all of that without Sirius teasing him for reading too much about Muggle “sickology.”

“Surprisingly Padfoot, some of us know how to occupy ourselves with things other than snogging.” He grinned back at Sirius who looked deeply offended in his typical melodramatic way, “It was fine.”

“You didn’t spend the whole summer studying, did you? Your last summer before adulthood and you wasted it on preparing for NEWTs. That’s dreadful, Moony.”

“You’re so dramatic. Didn’t you read the letters I sent you?” He had written to him as often as he could in place of not being able to see him in person.

“Well, I did at first but once I realized none of them had any dirty stuff I got a little bored.” 

“You’re an insufferable git, Pads.” Remus laughed with another roll of his eyes. 

“Yeah but I’m _your_ insufferable git,” He joked, “Really I did read them, but I can’t believe you spent your first summer being allowed to do magic with a bunch of Muggles. Honestly Moony, what’s the point of being of age if you’re not even allowed to do anything about it?”

“They’re not _a bunch of Muggles,_ they're my cousins you prat,” Remus attempted to defend himself. 

His mother’s family had visited for four weeks. It had been a bit unusual because he hadn’t seen any of them in quite some time. Hope’s family still lived in Scotland and they couldn’t make the trip down to Wales to visit the Lupins as often as she liked. His school schedule also kept him occupied for most of the year. Boarding school didn’t make for great opportunities to see family.

Lyall had always offered to help his wife visit her family using a portkey or an apparition side along. She always dismissed his offers not knowing how to explain to her family that money for the trip wouldn’t be an issue. Since as the wife of a wizard, a trip that should take hours and hours would only take her seconds. They already had to lie to her family about Lyall’s occupation and Remus's health and education. She didn’t want any more lies between them.

There were lots of questions he couldn’t answer. They had left before the last full moon of the summer but the first had been a bit uncomfortable. He usually stayed at home but he had to go to St. Mungo’s. They told his cousins that he was visiting some friends. His uncle Charles, in particular, looked a bit disappointed that Hope would allow her son to leave their rare family time just to see some friends. 

It was painful to see his mother not being able to explain what was happening, but it was better than sending his cousins home early. He wouldn’t let his illness prevent his mother from spending time with her brothers.

“Yes, and your cousins are a bunch of Muggles who you can’t do magic in front of, seems like a waste of coming of age.” Sirius countered.

“It was fine,” He repeated, “We went down to Cardiff and went to a football match one day. My little cousin Eddie is obsessed. He would get so excited when anything happened. I actually understand the rules of that one so it was definitely better than hearing you and James go off about Puddlemere every ten seconds.”

“Hey, I thought you liked it when I got excited about Quidditch,” Sirius said, faking disdain.

“I said you look cute when you get excited about it. I didn’t say I listened to a word you were saying.”  
  
“You’re an arse, Moony. I was pouring my heart out to you but all you cared about was my body.”

“Isn’t that the way you like it though?” He mocked sincerity but his thumb still traced Sirius’s jaw and he still leaned in to kiss him.

Sirius mumbled something that sounded a lot like yes against his lips. They both smiled against each other’s lips as they continued kissing. It was soft and easy. The size of the bench meant there wasn’t any pressure for more than just this gentleness. This special quiet where they held one another and the only sounds were their heartbeats.

“I missed this,” Sirius whispered.

“Is that why you were upset I wouldn’t visit?” Remus whispered right back.

He tried to sound sincere because he had been thinking the same thing. It had been six long weeks without anything like this. His family visiting meant he hadn’t had privacy in his bedroom either. The Statute of Secrecy meant he couldn’t manufacture any privacy magically either, as he would have during school. 

“I never get to have you just to myself like this. For such a large place Hogwarts doesn’t have any privacy. I just wanted to be alone with you.”

“You have me alone right now.” And just to prove his point he left a gentle kiss on his forehead. 

“Thank goodness for prefect meetings,” Sirius mumbled.

“And Dorcas?” Remus laughed.

“Fuck no,” Sirius guffawed causing Remus to laugh harder.

While Remus and Sirius were extremely private about their relationship and only kissed behind closed doors, Dorcas and Peter were quite the opposite. It wasn’t that the other marauders kept catching the two snogging; it was more like they didn’t even try to hide.

The Ravenclaw girl could be found at the Gryffindor table most mornings with Peter’s tongue down her throat. Some meals Peter would be at the Ravenclaw table where one had to assume they were being subjected to the same thing. It was hard to sympathize though when they finally had a meal where someone wasn’t playing tonsil hockey. 

Even James, who wasn’t one to shy away from writing odes to Lily Evans, found Peter’s constant gabbing about Dorcas irritating. Peter either didn’t care or didn’t notice because he would continue going on and on about Dorcas’s beautiful dark skin and perfect arse.

It was obvious he was proud to finally have something that the other marauders didn’t have. Padfoot had his good looks, Prongs had a spot on the Quidditch team, and even Moony had the best marks in their grade but now Wormtail was the one who had a girlfriend. 

“I certainly didn’t miss wondering whether I would find Dorcas in the dormitory when all I wanted was to take a nap before the full moon.” Remus quipped.

“I don’t miss hearing Peter go on and on about how nice her tits are when I was trying to study in the common room,” Sirius laughed.

“I’m glad I had six weeks without having to reach over both of them snogging during meals.”

“Merlin, can you imagine if we were like that Moony?” Sirius looked over at him, his tone was sarcastic but his face looked as if was actually imagining it. And not hating it.

“I thought you didn’t want anyone else to know?” 

Had he misread Sirius’s intentions? Was he holding him back? Did he wish he was with someone else who he could take out on dates in Hogsmeade and show off?

“Well yeah, but can you imagine Peter’s face if he had to deal with me and you snogging at breakfast? Priceless.”

Remus relaxed at his joking tone, “It would certainly be a fair payback for all the meals I missed because he and Dorcas made me lose my appetite.”

But would he be upset because his two friends were snogging or because his friends were both boys, Remus wondered to himself. He watched Sirius thinking, probably similar thoughts to his own, as his hand made its way back into Remus’s. He rubbed circles into Sirius’s wrist once more. It relaxed both of them. For the moment they were in their soft, gentle privacy for just a little bit longer. Nobody was here who would judge or tell them to stop.

“I love you Moony.” Sirius lifted their hands and kissed his knuckles gently.

“And I love you Pads,” He leaned in to kiss him back, as tenderly as he could, not wanting to break this moment.

Sirius’s lips were cracked. He always forgot that he needed chapstick. Still, they were the softest thing he had ever felt. The first time Sirius had kissed him he had understood why people wrote poetry about it. There were symphonies within their kisses. It was incomparable.

“Wow Potter, take a girl to dinner first,” A voice interrupted the moment and both boys jumped apart. Remus turned from his spot next to Sirius to see that James was entering the compartment apparently, unaware of their presence. 

“Okay,” James joked, to the redhead next to him, “How about the Great Hall? Does seven o’clock work for you?”  
He wasn’t just joking with her. Remus noticed that his arms were wrapped around her waist. And she wasn’t just a redhead. She was Lily Evans.

Sirius cleared his throat, “Prongs, Miss Evans, to what do we owe the pleasure?”

James looked up, somehow confused that his friends were in the same train compartment he had left them in, “I didn’t hear you. I thought you had gone looking for the candy trolley. Or Marlene and Mary. I waited for there to be a sound and there wasn’t so I-”

Remus chuckled at James' sudden lack of words followed by wild gesturing. It seemed when he needed it most his ability to bullshit himself out of any situation had left him. He looked like he was drowning as he looked for an excuse why he wanted to be in an empty compartment with Lily Evans who he still had his arms wrapped around.

“Well, what were the two of you doing in here being so quiet?” Lily raised an eyebrow, clearly not as embarrassed about the situation as James, “I can’t recall the last time either of you shut up for longer than a minute and we certainly waited longer than that before we came in here.”

It was now Sirius’s turn to panic. His face was still flushed from their earlier activities and it was quickly getting even redder. There was gasping for an explanation as Lily proudly sat herself and James across from the two boys. 

“We were reading,” Remus supplied, trying to be helpful.

James raised an eyebrow, “You two hadn’t seen one another all summer and instead of catching up or talking about pranking Sni- Severus, you were reading, in silence?”

Sirius nodded, “We’re proper scholars, mate.”

Remus felt himself blushing as his neck was getting hotter. This was not how he was supposed to be telling James about him and Sirius. He hadn’t even considered how or if he would tell Lily. She was his friend, even if he knew she didn’t always approve of Sirius.

“Then why were you sitting on the same side when there was an entire empty bench you could have sat on?” Lily questioned them again and Remus felt his palms start sweating.

“Moony gets lonely,” Sirius countered.

Lily didn’t look convinced, “That doesn’t even make sense.”

Sirius ignored the comment, “Weren’t you the one who was giggling at Prongs just a second ago? I don’t remember ever hearing you make that noise around him?”

James laughed and then stopped, “Hey, wait a minute.”

Lily and Sirius both ignored him and continued to glare at one another. Neither seemed to want to break and explain what they both had very obviously been doing. She had six years of pride and a hatred of James Potter to keep up, while he had a secret that he refused to let out this easily. It was going to be a long train ride if this standoff continued.

Remus glanced at James and attempted to ignore the tension and the other occupants in the compartment, “Prongs, how was your summer?”

“It was lovely actually,” He paused as if calculating what he should say in front of either Sirius or Lily, “We went out to Brighton for a few days and enjoyed the beach. It’s nice finally being able to apparate by myself. What about you?”

“My mum’s family visited for a month.”

“The Muggles?”

“Yes the Muggles,” He huffed, his friends really needed to expand their circles, “They came in from Scotland. We went down to Cardiff and did some touristy shit. It was nice.”

There was an uncomfortable silence as half the compartment refused to engage in the conversation. James glanced at Lily, who gave a stare that even Remus could tell meant don’t you fucking dare. They weren’t going to break them quite yet.

“Moony?” James looked towards his friend, “Care to join me in the lavatory?”

Remus nodded and stood to join him in getting out as quickly as they could.

“Both of you?” Lily asked.

“Well,” James shrugged, “Moony gets lonely.”

“So you have to go piss together?” 

James shrugged once again and opened the sliding door and waited for his friend to follow. They began walking down the train aisle. Each of the compartments contained students excitedly catching up with friends or first years nervously fidgeting as they began awkward conversations.

It was bittersweet knowing this was his last ride to Hogwarts. He kept pausing as they walked, reminding himself to savor these moments. Too quickly he would enter adulthood and he wouldn’t get to spend every day with his friends. 

James seemed to be looking for something. He wasn’t just walking aimlessly in an attempt to avoid Lily and Sirius, as Remus was doing. Then he stopped walking as if he had found what he was looking for. There was an empty compartment and James entered and left the door open for his friend to follow. Remus sat across from him and began picking at a loose thread on his pants. 

“I saw you two before Lily and I came in, you know. You weren’t just chatting. You _certainly_ weren’t reading.”

“James, I don’t want to have this conversation right now.” He said through gritted teeth.

“Clearly, otherwise you would have been honest back there.” He almost seemed proud of his comeback.

“I’m serious. I don’t want to tell you anything not because I don’t like you but it’s not just my secret to tell.”

“I get it,” James looked sincere, “But I don’t like that you thought I would be mad about the two of you.”

He didn’t need to be more specific because Remus understood him, “It wasn’t just that.”

“Peter?”

He laughed, “Well yes, but also we just wanted it between the two of us for a while. Something that was just for us.”

“That makes sense.”

“Are you surprised?” 

That had been lurking in the back of his head since James had stumbled in on them. Honestly, it had been present since he and Sirius had first kissed. Would people be surprised or would they claim they always knew? People seemed to think that men like that, like him, were exciting. Maybe that was true for Sirius but Remus was quite boring.

“That you like blokes?” Remus nodded, “Not really. I’m more surprised you like Sirius. I thought he’d be a bit much for you.”

Remus chuckled, “So you knew?”

“Well I didn’t know exactly but you were never quite interested in girls like the rest of us. I mean I get that Peter can be a bit graphic in his descriptions of Dorcas but you always seemed more uncomfortable than the rest of us.”

“I like girls too.”

“You do?” James seemed more surprised by this than he had about Sirius and him being together.

“You can like both you know.”

“Yeah of course,” James nodded rapidly although it sounded like he hadn’t known.

“So, you and Evans?” Remus asked with a smile, “When did that happen?”

“Just a few weeks ago. We had been writing all summer and then we went and met up in London one day and it just sort of happened.”

“And Padfoot didn’t know?” Remus was surprised. He didn’t know James even knew _how_ to keep a secret, let alone one as major as finally snogging Lily Evans.

“You and Black aren’t the only ones who know how to keep a secret.”

“Touché.”

They sat in silence across from one another. There wasn’t the tension from before. In fact, Remus felt more relaxed than he had in ages. For once he had no secrets. Nothing was stuck in his throat waiting to be said aloud. It was freeing.

Soon enough the candy trolley passed them. James bought enough Chocolate Frogs, Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans, and Cauldron Cakes to feed a small village. Remus bought a packet of Pumpkin Pasties. 

“Do you think either of them has given in and admitted that their cover was blown?” James asked as he popped a few beans into his mouth. 

“No. They’re both too stubborn.” Remus said after stealing one of James’s frogs. 

“The longer they go on the more obvious it is,” James said as he stood and slid the door open for them to return to their original carriage.

Remus followed him, “It doesn’t matter. They’re both too unreasonable to relent.”

James laughed and walked into the train car aisle. Remus glanced around once again but somehow he didn’t feel as sad this time. It was no longer a _last time_. It was now the first time he was walking with James while James knew who he truly was and it was still okay. They made their way back to the compartment and it was still silent as Sirius stared down Lily.

He glanced up at his friends as they entered and his face changed, “Fucking traitors.”

“What?” Lily was not yet aware of every little acute expression of either Remus or James.

“They told,” Sirius scoffed.

They both rolled their eyes at his dramatics and sat in their respective spots opposite one another. James just laughed and Remus ruffled Sirius’s hair.

“They told what,” Lily smirked, thinking she’d won.

“Oh shove off Evans,” Sirius groaned, “I’ll admit that you saw me and Moony, and you know, that I know, you and Potter only came back here after the prefects meeting because you thought it might be empty and you could snog.”

Lily huffed, knowing she’d been defeated, but smiled again once James laid his head on her shoulder. She may have momentarily lost a bit of her dignity but at least she could now publicly enjoy James’ company. 

“Besides,” Sirius added looking at James now, “Did you actually think I bought it when you said you had to go to London, alone, to go shopping?”

“I’m allowed to do things by myself,” James stuttered.

“Yeah, but you weren’t, you were with Evans,” Sirius then made extremely mature kissing noises while his hands made accompanying gestures.

“Oh shove off, Black,” Lily said with a roll of her eyes, “You and Remus were mysteriously missing for half the ride home at the end of last term. Don’t think that went unnoticed.”

Remus blushed because he _had_ thought that it had gone unnoticed. They had only wanted some private moments between just the two of them, away from their friends, before the holiday. It hadn’t been like what Lily was probably imagining.

“Keeping tabs on me, are you? Prongs you better watch out.” Sirius snarked.

Lily opened her mouth to protest but James just laughed so she relaxed and let herself lie her head against his. Typically Lily seemed quite tense, but she looked different now that she was with James. He wondered if that was how he looked with Sirius.

They continued talking about their summers and as they chatted Remus laid his head on Sirius’s lap. He allowed himself to be lulled by the rhythm of the train and the feeling of his hair being played with once again. Nobody seemed to mind this public display of affection between them. James and Sirius talked about a Puddlemere match they had gone to together, and Lily told the story of how her sister had gotten engaged to some ugly fellow named Vernon.

Soon, James and Lily realized their Head Student duties weren’t on hold just because their relationship had been found out. They said goodbye and then began walking the aisles in search of any mischief. It was not unnoticed that the two were holding hands.

Sirius lolled his head back on the chair and relaxed once the two had left and once again had given them privacy. Remus almost found himself falling asleep when he heard the sound of the door being slid open once again. He didn’t even lift his head, he was much too comfortable in his current position. 

“Go away Lily you won,” Sirius barked at the figure in the doorway, not bothering to look up.

“Uh mate, I’m not Lily.”

Remus brushed his hair out his face and looked to see that Peter was standing right in front of him, hand in hand with Dorcas Meadowes, looking puzzled at his two friends snuggling up on a train bench. Dorcas was avoiding looking at them entirely.

“Oh fuck, not again,” Sirius groaned while his boyfriend laughed from his lap, “Get out of here, Wormtail.”

They had really thought they were going to be able to hide what they were doing at least longer than the train ride to school. Perhaps they should check whether they were alone before they got so comfortable together. Still, he smiled. There weren’t any more secrets between the marauders now. He could relax.


End file.
